By John Essien
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has confirmed the expulsion of Harambee Stars Kenya and Warriors of Zimbabwe from the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers which begins on the first day of June 2022.
CAF had included them in the official draw earlier in April 2022 on condition that the suspension must be lifted two weeks before their first match day.
Kenya and Zimbabwe, suspended for political interference, have not yet met the criteria required by the Federation of International Football Association (FIFA) Congress as a prerequisite for lifting their suspension.
According to an official statement on CAF’s website, both Kenya and Zimbabwe are now out of the race to qualify for next year’s AFCON that will be held in Ivory Coast.
“The two associations; Football Kenya Federation (FKF) and the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA)will be considered losers and eliminated from the competition,”CAF said the statement.
“Groups C and K will be composed only of three teams and the order of the matches will be maintained in accordance with the match schedule that has been communicated to the teams after the draw.
“The first and runner-up teams of those groups will qualify to the final tournament.”
